6/2/2024

Wilmington Whiteface 50K Mountain Bike Race

Wilmington, New York

Rick Wise

Finish Time:  2:28:35

Overall Place:  36th Place / 110

Division Place 10th Place / 27

Asad Khan

Finish Time:  3:07:14

Overall Place:  96th Place / 110

Division Place:  26th Place / 27

Race Recap By Rick Wise:

I had a great weekend centered around the Wilmington Whiteface 50K mountain bike race in Wilmington, NY (near Lake Placid)! The event was really well done with about 400 riders split between the 50k and 100k distances. It was awesome to spend the weekend with friend and teammate Asad Khan . We had some great home cooked food and enjoyed some amazing scenery while hiking, biking and swimming in the area. I was happy with my effort during the race. It was my first race anywhere near this length and I did pretty well. I took 10th in my age group. I had a fun sprint finish with a girl who was probably half my age! She nipped me at the end, but she deserved it. She had stronger legs at the end of the race.

The highlight of my mountain bike racing season this year was competing in the Wilmington Whiteface 50k MTB race near Lake Placid, New York. This iconic race is held on the outskirts of Whiteface Mountain where the 1980 Winter Olympic skiing events were held. The race was very well organized with excellent route markings and crew support. I wasn’t sure how I would do as I had never competed in a race this long and had never even ridden that far on a mountain bike! The race, referred to as “The Beast from the East”, is 30.3 miles long, with 2,912 feet of ascent. I knew that was going to be a long day of climbing. The majority of the race is more like a gravel race on sandy “fire road” type of roads. The sand was a bit of a surprise and made forward progress, and especially climbing, more difficult than expected. There was only a few miles of single track on the 50k course. All in all, I had a great day on the course. I fueled my body appropriately and was able to finish 13th in my age group out of 26, 42nd overall out of 111, with a time of 2:28:35. I would recommend this race to anyone looking for a mountain bike challenge to stretch themselves. If you’re looking for a bigger challenge, there is a 100k race as well. I’ve been told it’s the best preparation for the Leadville MTB 100, a world renowned 100-mile, high-elevation race in Leadville, Colorado, you can find in the east.